Sorry for the delay! Art school and my work kinda took up my time, and I was more inspired to work on some other projects for a while. This chapter was also difficult to write for some reason. More after the chapter. Heads up, kind of a sensitive event happens in this chapter, and I did my best to write it. Take care when reading if you need to please.
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Handing the cup of coffee to the customer, Percy let out a sigh and leaned against the counter once they turned and left. The day had been almost criminally slow. He wasn't sure what was up with it, the weather was even getting colder as they approached thanksgiving so he figured they would be increasingly busy. At least that was what everyone had warned him about. But no, today seemed to be devoid of more than a few customers entering at a time. That meant Annabeth was off in the back catching up on paperwork she had been putting off far too long, Piper and Jason were off to the side chatting and experimenting with new drink ideas while Percy was stuck standing at the counter, wondering how long he could go without blinking until the next customer came in.
That was the price to pay working at a cafe though. Some days you didn't get to rest until thirty minutes after your shift, and sometimes you were hoping every other coffee shop would go out of business just so you had something to do.
At one point, Ashe had wandered in alone, and that served as a good distraction for Percy for a few minutes. Thinking back, he was pretty sure that was the first time he had seen her enter the shop without her boyfriend with whom she seemed to be joined at the hip with. On slow days they usually could help pass the time with conversation or something at least. But no, this time just Ashe had entered. Instead of ordering, she had just moved over to her usual table and sat down sulking.
"It's rude to stare." Piper informed him after a moment. Blinking, Percy realized he had been staring at her for a few minutes by that point as he tried to piece together what was going on. Ashe hadn't even noticed, having been to busy staring at her phone screen.
"Think they had a fight?" He offered with a slight tilt of his head.
Raising an eyebrow, Piper looked the raven haired girl over once. "Nah. I've seen them fight once before, both of them are a lot poutier and their fights are a joke. I doubt they've stayed mad at each other for more than a couple hours before." Piper offered with a fond roll of her eyes. "Those two are weird and actually 'talk their problems out'" Piper said as if the words offended her.
Percy laughed and nudged Piper's hip with his own. "Pretty sure that shouldn't be weird."
Piper shrugged. "Shouldn't be, but it is. Gotta have that sweet sweet drama, you know?" Piper rolled her eyes, clearly too experienced with dealing with other people's drama in the past.
Sympathetically patting her on the shoulder, Percy turned his attention back to her. "So what's the deal if they didn't fight then?"
Piper just paused for a moment, taking in the scene again. "Tyler is probably out running an errand. Told her to go on ahead and he'd catch up. Given the fact her face is glued to her phone that she usually hardly checks means she's probably waiting for a text from him or something. If they were expecting to be apart it wouldn't bother her as much. No, she's moping because their date is being delayed by something." Piper reasoned.
Glancing over at his friend, Percy realized that she was actually scary good at reading people. Her theory made perfect sense to Percy.
Percy was about to say something when he saw a guy get up from across the cafe and make a b-line towards Ashe. Eyes widening, he looked to Piper wondering if she was getting the same vibe he was from the guy. "Is he gonna..."
Piper nodded, her face a mixture of concern and amusement. "He's absolutely going to try and pick her up."
Frowning Percy crossed his arms. "Surely Ashe wouldn't..."
Piper's eyebrows raised. "I'm going to do you a favor and not tell Ashe you even mentioned that. You think she'd even flirt with him back? I'm more concerned that in her bad mood she's going to deck him."
Percy raised his hands. "I didn't think she would! I just meant I hope he can take no for an answer."
Satisfied, Piper nodded. "Good answer. Let's hope he can." She muttered, clearly too invested in watching the approaching train wreck happening across the cafe.
The guy seemed a bit nervous, but had a grin plastered on his face as he walked across the cafe, his eyes focused on Ashe. Stopping in front of her table, he seemed to say something and gesture as if he was waiting for a response. Ashe made no indication she heard him, instead staring at her phone with that frown she still had on her face.
Percy winced, feeling a twinge of sympathy for that guy. Clearly he had no idea of the situation he was trying to get himself involved with.
The gut repeated whatever he said, and Ashe looked up with like a deer in the headlights look. Clearly she had just realized that the guy was there. She offered a sympathetic smile and greeted him. The guy seemed to repeat whatever his pick-up line was for the third time and Ashe tilted her head slightly.
Percy saw an apologetic look cross her face before she said something that clearly was an attempt and a gentle rejection.
"Shot down." Piper muttered under her breath.
Percy saw the man falter a bit, but straightened his back instead of sulking away. That was when Percy realized things weren't going to end there like they should. He said something else, and Ashe's face darkened slightly, though she was clearly plastering on a fake smile obviously. She said something with a firm look, another clear rejection. The man just leaned against her table, crossing his arms and saying something.
This seemed to set Ashe off as she suddenly stood up. "WHAT did you say about my boyfriend?" Ashe's voice cut through the quiet cafe suddenly.
"Oh sh-" Piper immediately began trying to scramble around the counter. Percy was about to follow her but a customer walked up and he froze, unsure of what to do.
The man said something in a quieter tone, clearly caught off guard by Ashe standing up and getting in his face.
"I don't care who the hell you think you are!" Ashe snapped, clenching her fists.
Annabeth emerged from the backroom eyes panicked. "Did someone seriously set off Ashe?" She asked Percy as she began to make her way over to the situation, hoping to prevent some poor guy from getting his ass beat by an MMA fighter.
Percy took the order of the college girl who seemed blissfully unaware of the brawl that was about to break out as he split his attention between not messing up the transaction and watching to see what would happen.
The wanna-be smooth guy stepped back, clearly not wanting to push the point any further, but judging by his look around he was starting to feel defensive.
Before Ashe could continue, or either of his coworkers could intervene there was a door jingle and a familiar mop of raven hair entered.
"If you get a record they'll kick you out of the tournament." Tyler's voice chimed in in a slightly teasing, if not warning tone as he made his way across the cafe with his stoic smile still intact.
Ashe turned at his voice, her eyes lighting up as she grinned. She moved past the guy, brushing his shoulder roughly as she wrapped an arm around her boyfriend's waist possessively.
Percy dropped a few cubes of ice onto the ground as his eyes remained glued on the scene off to the side, unaware of the annoyed sigh the college girl was giving him for taking so long with the drink.
Finally able to hear snippets of the conversation, the guy just scoffed.
"Whatever. Bitch is too crazy for me anyway."
Ashe just glared at him, but Tyler actually took a step towards him until Ashe's grip tightened around his waist and physically held him in place. "Down boy." She muttered to her boyfriend though she clearly wanted to take a piece out of the sexist asshole herself.
Tyler just squared his shoulders and lead them back to their usual booth. "You should leave." Tyler warned him as they passed, clearly done with the situation.
"You can't tell me to." The guy muttered defiantly.
"No, but I can." Annabeth's voice cut in with a tone that didn't leave any room for discussion. "Leave. Now."
A shiver went down Percy's spine. In someways her calm tone was even scarier than Ashe's angry one. Annabeth was still definitely on the list of people Percy did not want to cross.
The guy seemed to get the message and scampered out of the coffee shop, complaining how the drinks "tasted like shit anyway" and all that.
Finally able to finish the drink and hand it to the college girl who had opted to furiously type on her phone, probably tweeting about how horrible the place was, Percy was honestly a bit glad for the distraction. The day felt just a bit more alive at least.
Off to the side he saw an apologetic looking Ashe apologizing to Annabeth, who just brushed her off and offered her own apology for the customer. After a minute more of small talk, both parties seemed satisfied with their apology and Tyler and Ashe retreated back to their usual table, flirting and being even more lovey-dovey than usual.
"Well that was something." Piper said as she slid back next to Percy at the counter.
Percy hummed in acknowledgment. "That killed some time at least."
Piper nodded, still staring at the two in the corner. "Look at them. They make me sick." She said fondly as she watched the couple holding hands and staring at each other with eyes that seemed too pure for this world.
Percy just laughed. "She looks like a love-struck puppy, when a minute ago I was pretty sure she was going to shove that guy's foot somewhere it should never go."
Piper nodded. "Women are tough. Don't mess with them." A sly smirk crossed her face. "When you finally get around to asking her out, making sure you read the signs and it'll go much better."
Percy stared at her for a second, confused until she pieced it together. "Piper! I'm not-" Before he could properly rant, the door chimed and Piper switched to customer service mode as she cheerfully greeted the new customer leaving Percy annoyed and plastering on a smile of his own.
The day seemed to crawl on at a slow pace, the day's entertainment seemingly having already happened. Percy was starting to wonder what the odds were that Annabeth would send one of them home. After a few more moments of contemplating his life choices, Percy saw Annabeth approach him with a sympathetic smile.
"Take a break. Have an extra ten minutes, nothing's going on after all. Feel free to stretch your legs."
Percy grinned thankfully before signing out of his register and heading back towards the break room. Letting out a yawn, he fished around his cluttered locker, digging for his phone. Finally grabbing it, he saw two missed calls from his mom. Eyes widening, Percy felt his heart starting to beat faster. Why would his mom call him twice? Normally it was a text, or she'd wait till he was off work. Something had to be wrong.
He unlocked his phone and was about to call her when the phone rang again. His mom's name flashed on the screen and he answered it quickly.
"Hello?" He asked, trying to keep the panic out of his voice in case everything was normal.
Percy was pretty sure he thought of every possible bad answer he could have gotten to the question, but he had missed one.
"Gabe is back."
Backing up, Percy's eyes widened as he felt his body slam into the lockers. "What?"
Sally took a deep breath, clearly trying to stay calm and composed. "He's outside right now, slamming on the door. I called the cops and they're on their way. Whatever you do, stay at work. I'll be okay, they'll be here soon."
"Mom! Are you sure you're okay?" Percy could feel his pulse pounding in his temple as horrible memories flashed back through his mind.
"I'm fine." Sally said in a reassuring tone, but the slightest tone of hesitation set Percy off.
"Grab the bat, and hide in the closet if you need to till the cops get there. I'm heading over."
"Percy! Do-" Percy hung up the phone as he burst out of the break room. There was no time to argue, his drunken asshole of a stepdad was trying to mess up their quiet little life again.
Apparently his entrance into the rest of the cafe had been a little more dramatic than he had expected because the rest of the staff turned to look at him with alarm.
"I need to go! I'm sorry. There's no time. I'll just-"
Percy patted his jeans pockets before his eyes widened in realization.
"FUCK!" He shouted loudly. He had gotten a ride from his mom today instead of driving, he didn't have his car.
Piper and Jason moved over towards him hesitantly, having abandoned the registers out of apparent concern for their coworker seemingly having a breakdown.
"Percy?" Piper's voice was gentle and cautious, clearly unsure of what was going on.
There wasn't time to explain to them! He just needed a car. He needed to get home.
"I left my car at home! Fuck! Why today of all days?"
Percy snapped at no one in particular as he ran a hand through his hair anxiously. Could he run? It would take too long. Before he could fret anymore he felt a strong grip on his arm stop him and turn him around.
"Percy! Talk to me. What's wrong?" Annabeth's voice was clearly dripping with concern, but it held a level of calm control that Percy had come to admire in his friend. Ever so slightly he felt the chaos in his brain align just a bit.
"It's Gabe." Percy said trying to figure out how to phrase things.
Annabeth stared at him in confusion for a moment before she remembered the name. Her eyes widened in horror.
"Where?"
"My apartment. My mom called... he's rampaging outside or something. She called the cops but..."
Annabeth took one look at Percy, before ripping off her managerial tag. She tossed the tag and keys to Piper. "There's an emergency, I'm taking Percy home real quick. You're in charge, call Reyna if you need to." Annabeth ordered before she turned, grabbing Percy's hand and quickly rushed out of the store. Percy knew Annabeth trusted Piper more than anyone else probably, and knew that she could practically run the store herself at this point.
Annabeth just lead Percy out towards her car, already fishing her keys out of her pocket and quickly starting the engine. Percy saw her about to peel out of the parking lot when she looked at him.
"Where...?"
It dawned on him that she had never actually been to his apartment before. Some part of his mind registered the fact that he really wished it had been under better circumstances. Quickly giving her his address, they sped across the city.
Percy had learned Annabeth was pretty good driver, and he was incredibly thankful for that at the moment because he was pretty sure there was no way the speed they were going was legal, at all. Percy tightened his grip on the handle in Annabeth's car a little more. He just stared ahead, occasionally offering her some directions to keep her on the fastest route.
"Sorry." He muttered out, taking shaky deep breaths.
As they reached a red light, Annabeth turned and shot him a surprisingly sharp glare. "Don't you even start." She snapped. "What's your plan when we get there? Do you think he will be dangerous?"
Percy paused, looking surprisingly solemn. "I... I don't know. He's never tried to violate the restraining order, but last I heard he was in Jail. I guess he just got out. He's probably drunk... but I don't know. I just can't do nothing though."
Annabeth shared a serious look with him, feeling her own heart start to pound.
The light turned green and Annabeth slammed on the gas.
Percy looked around at the familiar buildings, seeming them approaching their destination. His body and mind were overloaded, he didn't know how to feel or what to think. His hands were shaking slightly, and whatever plan he tried to form in his head just fell to pieces as his train of thought jumped to something else. The only thing he knew is that he had to be there for his mom. No matter what.
Annabeth pulled into the parking lot and Percy ripped off his seat belt. Before Annabeth could even fully bring the car to a stopped he had jumped out, stumbling a few steps before he took off into a dead sprint towards their apartment. Before he could see it, he could hear the drunken yelling.
"GET OUT HERE." His slurred voice called out.
A shiver went down his spine, he knew that drunken tone all too well and it still haunted his dreams occasionally. Doing what he did best, he rushed forward following his gut rather than trying to think things through. Sprinting towards the door, he saw him again.
Gabe was a pretty large guy, with a larger gut. His hair seemed to be doing even worse, and his few years in jail definitely hadn't done any favors for him. He was waving a beer bottle around in one hand.
"HEY!" Percy bellowed out as he slowed to a stop. Honestly Percy wasn't sure how he expected to feel when he saw him. Scared? Shocked? Angry? Disappointed?
All Percy felt was a deep rage.
Gabe turned to him, glaring at him. "Look who it is, you're all grown up."
"Leave. Now."
"This is none of your business." Gabe said, before turning back and slamming his fist on the door. "Open up!"
"I said leave!" Percy repeated, storming towards him. He wasn't the same boy that used to be tormented. He had caught up to Gave in height, and swimming had done wonders for his physique. He was no longer scared of the angry old man in front of him.
"Percy?" Sally's muffled voice came from the other side of the door.
"Mom, it's okay." Percy called.
"Aren't you full of yourself?" Gabe called, before he shoved Percy hard.
Stumbling back a few steps, he winced as his back collided with the railing of the staircase up to the next floor.
"Percy!" Annabeth's voice rang out, clearly furious.
Unable to hold back, Percy stepped forward and shoved Gabe hard. He wanted to do worse, but he held himself back. Not for Gabe's sake, but for his own.
In Gabe's drunken state his coordination was a lot worse than Percy's and he stumbled and fell down. Clambering back to his feet, his eyes were blazing in rage.
"Leave." Percy repeated, ignoring his mom's protests from the other side of the door. He could hear her starting to unlock the door. "Mom, st-"
Before he could continue there was an explosion of glass next to him. He winced as he felt shards of glass cut his arm and cheek. Percy turned to look at Gabe who had just thrown his bottle, but before he could say anything his face exploded in pain. He stumbled backwards as he clutched his eye, right where Gabe had just punched him.
"Percy!" Annabeth shouted, finally catching up to him. She turned to Gabe, shouting at him with shaking fists. "Leave him alone!"
The sound of sirens blared as the cops finally showed up. Just then Percy turned and swung a hook at Gabe, catching him in the jaw and sending him crashing to the ground. The door flung open and Sally emerged, wrapping her arms around Percy protectively. "Percy! Are you okay?"
The cops came running onto the scene, having seen the scuffle between Percy and Gabe.
"What's going on!" The demanded, clearly trying to figure out the situation.
"This asshole won't leave us alone!" Percy snapped, wincing as he held his head, ignoring the stinging from the small lacerations the glass caused.
"Shh... it's okay now." Sally soothed him, and Percy felt the adrenaline slowly starting to leave his body. Glancing over, he saw the cops had isolated Gabe, while another of them talked to Annabeth who was clearly the most level-headed person in the situation. Percy was grateful that she was here. He was still to upset to properly give an account of the situation, and judging by his mom's expression when she saw him bleeding, she wasn't doing that well either.
A few minutes later, and Percy saw Gabe getting a pair of handcuffs slapped around his wrists. The cop stopped to ask him and his mom questions, but they pretty much only confirmed what Annabeth had explained already. Sally sent Annabeth and himself inside, telling Annabeth to check his injuries while she finished talking to the cops. Percy was about to protest, but the reassuring smile she gave him once again proved how tough his mom really was. She already had her feet back underneath her and was talking to the cops calmly, and seemingly at the moment was the most worried about his small cuts and forming bruise on his face. He finally relented, and Annabeth lead him inside while she looked for a first aid kit. After telling her where it was, Percy just sat down and tried to relax. There was too much going through his mind. Honestly, he had hoped he never would have had to see Gabe's face again.
Annabeth finished applying basic first aid to his cuts, and Percy just offered her a weak smile as thanks.
A frown crossed Annabeth's face, and suddenly she knelt down so she was eye level to Percy sitting.
"Hey, look at me." Annabeth said in a gentle tone. Percy met her eyes, and she offered him a soft smile.
"Are you okay?" She asked after a moment.
Percy nodded. "The cuts weren't that bad. Mostly just shallow ones."
Annabeth shook her head, resting her hand over his gently. "That's not what I meant. Are you okay?"
Was he? Honestly, Percy wasn't sure. "It's... a lot to process." He said after a moment honestly. "But Gabe is going away again, and I don't think he's coming back. Mom is okay... I think I'll be fine."
Annabeth just smiled and squeezed his hand gently. "You'll be fine. I know you will. Both you and your mom are wonderful, strong people, and Gabe is out of your life for good now."
"Your friend is smart." Sally's voice said suddenly, causing them both to look up.
Percy knew his mom better than anyone, so he could tell how she was really doing. She was holding up surprisingly well, she was in her "mom" mode, where she could handle anything, and her number one priority was taking care of him.
Annabeth stood up, releasing his hand and took a step back. "Are you okay Mrs. Jackson?"
Sally just smiled. "Sally, dear. And I am, thank you. It was scary, but he's gone now. The cops are going to arrest him for violating the restraining order, and we won't be seeing him again most likely. He was also still on parole when this happened."
Another wave of relief crashed through Percy, Gabe really would be gone from their lives this time. He stood up, feeling a surprising wave of exhaustion pass through him as the absence of adrenaline took it's toll.
Annabeth scooted out of the way. "I think I'll head back now. You two should probably take it easy..." She muttered a bit awkwardly, clearly feeling like she was intruding now.
Percy glanced between his mom and Annabeth. "About work..."
Before he could even form another word, Annabeth let out an annoyed sigh. "Are you serious Percy? You think I'd let you come back to work? Stay home. You're also not allowed to come in tomorrow either, Jason will cover for you. Or I will, someone will. Just take it easy, okay?"
Nodding, Percy once again appreciated how good of a friend and boss Annabeth was. "Can you tell the rest of the crew that I'm okay? I'm sure they'll be worried."
Annabeth nodded. "Of course. But if they ask what happened..." Annabeth muttered, clearly trying to figure out where the line of information was.
Sharing a glance with his mom, Percy shrugged. "Just tell them the truth. Don't lie to them for my sake. "
Annabeth nodded, but he had a feeling she would still be reserved with what information she passed along.
Hesitating for only a moment, he opened his arms. Annabeth seemed to get the hint, and stepped forward and wrapped him in a tight hug. "You'll be okay." Was all she said gently near his ear, and Percy believed it.
After a moment they separated, and Annabeth shared a hug with Sally. Sally once again thanked her, and promised her cookies for her help, before Annabeth waved goodbye and left them alone.
A little while later, and both Sally and himself were once again in their usual spots on the couch, eating dinner as they watched Dancing with the Stars. They were both clearly a little shaken from the day still, and Percy's face was still throbbing, but they knew they would be okay.
An hour later when Percy's phone exploded with messages of concern and checking in, he realized he really had gotten lucky with his knew friends and work place. After a brief conversation with his mom, they had finalized plans to bring in an assortment of cookies and candy on his next shift as thanks to everyone. For now though, he was just happy to relax with his mom and let the past bury itself.
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Thank you for reading once again! I really appreciate it. Sorry for the delay, like I mentioned before my life has just been full of work, and other distractions. I work on this story when I'm inspired to, and I have free time to, so updates aren't exactly as frequent as I like, but that's how it is. I know it's not as frequent as many of you would like, and I apologize for that. I won't give up on this story, no matter how long it takes between chapters.
Also, please do not comment on my other stories asking about this story. Each story I post here is because I really enjoyed how it turned out, versus everything I post to my Tumblr, and I really would prefer not to be pestered about this one in the reviews of other stories. Not many of you do it, but it still kind of kills my desire to write this when that happens.
Anyway, venting aside, I do hope to update more frequently. This was one of those tough chapters that was hard to force out for some reason, but the next few should be lighter pieces to write hopefully.